# PA approves a smoking ban



## silentjon (Apr 19, 2007)

Recently PA joined most other states with a statewide smoking ban. While naturally I am not happy about this, it is not as severe as most other states.

Where Smoking Is Allowed

Under a new state law, smoking will only be permitted in the following locations:

* Drinking establishments where food is 20 percent or less of annual sales.
* A designated outdoor smoking area at a sports or recreation facility, theater or performance establishment.
* Private clubs.
* Up to 25 percent of the rooms in a lodging establishment, like a hotel or motel, and all rooms at full-service truck stops.
* Up to 25 percent of a casino floor, and up to 50 percent if a casino can prove to the state Department of Revenue that the smoking ban is harming its business. (A Philadelphia law bans smoking in any city casino.)
* Nursing homes, adult-care facilities, drug and alcohol treatment facilities and mental-health care facilities.
* Private residences and private vehicles, unless the residence or vehicle is being used for child care or adult-care services.
* Cigar bars that are connected to a tobacco shop or where tobacco-related products total at least 15 percent of annual sales.
* Tobacco shops; manufacturers, importers and wholesalers of tobacco products; manufacturers of tobacco-related products.
* Tobacco promotion events, or fund-raisers for nonprofit and charitable organizations where cigars are featured.


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## svb (Jan 12, 2008)

Well, at least you can still smoke in a shop (unlike Illinois)


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## havanitascigars-cl (Apr 29, 2007)

Sort of odd they allow smoking in nursing homes. Maybe they figure if you are in a nursing home, then what the hell.


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## DBCcigar (Apr 24, 2008)

*Nursing Homes*



havanitascigars said:


> Sort of odd they allow smoking in nursing homes. Maybe they figure if you are in a nursing home, then what the hell.


:roflmao:


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## Doogie (Oct 15, 2007)

thats not as bad as NY. cosider yourself lucky


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## El Lechero (Apr 13, 2008)

Rest assured....this is just the first step.


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## ibosmiley-cl (Apr 15, 2007)

Definitely a more reasonable ban as compared to other states.


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## xxwaldoxx-cl (Mar 3, 2007)

havanitascigars said:


> Sort of odd they allow smoking in nursing homes. Maybe they figure if you are in a nursing home, then what the hell.


From what I understand, the reasoning is that when an elderly person wants to smoke it may be too strenuous to physically move themselves to the smoking area, so they should just stay put. _(not saying that I agree with it, just passing on what I've been told.)
_

Regardless of the exemptions, this is just a foot in the door which will lead to more and more revisions later on down the line to restrict the ban even more.


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## happy1 (Jun 29, 2007)

Another one bites the dust


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## Redbeard (Aug 7, 2006)

dang i just smoked inside a bar in PA a couple months ago when i was there at the REX theater . Those rules are better than ohios tho. you cant smoke at any bar here. only at tobacco shops . thats about it


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## The EVP (Dec 21, 2007)

Definately just a foot in the door. NY started out the same way. Give the nazi's an inch and they'll take it all....


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## The EVP (Dec 21, 2007)

I've posted my thoughts on this on my myspace page, which you can go to by clicking the link in my signature. Thank you silentjohn for posting the synapsis of the bill. I hope you don't mind, but I cut and pasted those points, giving you credit in my posting.


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## silentjon (Apr 19, 2007)

The EVP said:


> Definately just a foot in the door. NY started out the same way. Give the nazi's an inch and they'll take it all....


That is what I am worried about. Overall, it not that bad, especially since you can still smoke in bars (as long as food sales are less that 20% of your annual sales).


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## Damsel-cl (Feb 12, 2008)

lets hope thats the extent of the regulations - PA is central to the Cigar Belt!


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## Romansonarm (Jun 26, 2008)

I think it's sexy when girls smoke cigars


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## baba (Nov 5, 2007)

That is alot better than washington. You can't smoke in any of the areas listed. You can not smoke within 15 feet of any door way. Some of the parks are off limit, and you will get a $100 fine. All cigar lounges are closed, bars have closed, unemployment for bartenders is at the top of the unemployed. One of the legislators tried to make it against the law to smoke in your car.
At this rate, I have to leave the U.S. to find freedom.


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## connorwho (Aug 21, 2007)

Being a resident of PA Ive enjoyed the charmed life of little smoking restriction and no cigar specific tax. I feel this is all going the way of the dinosaur pretty soon. This country is in the throes of one hell of struggle with freedoms. The NRA wins a ruling against Philadelphia trying to strengthen its Gun laws and the same week a man is arrested for talking about his distain for cops in Philadelphia while waving a gun. Think hard, what rights and freedoms are being selectively maintained while others are thrown out arbitrarily?


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## TempestPSO (Mar 16, 2008)

This is insane as a resident of PA and cigar smoker I'm dissapointed in this legislation. Think of all the mailorder and wholesale companies that deal in cigars in this state. It may sound odd being so far north but cigars are a nice part of our economy, CI/CBID/CIGAR.com, Holts. I know these companies are making money, I know cause I spend a good bit with them, and that creates tax revenue. Leave it to us to run what little jobs we have out of the state.


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## JohnR (Apr 1, 2007)

Iowa's new smoking ban laws just went into effect July 1. They are much more extreme than PA. If a bar sells ANY prepared food they can't have smoking inside or on an outside patio area. If they only sell bags of chips and beef jerky, then they can smoke outside in a "beer garden". OK, like a dive with no food is going to have a beer garden. Stupid bleeps.


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## TempestPSO (Mar 16, 2008)

Wow, reading this PAs ban is pretty weak but give them time and I'm sure it will get mcuh worse.


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## silentjon (Apr 19, 2007)

TempestPSO said:


> Wow, reading this PAs ban is pretty weak but give them time and I'm sure it will get mcuh worse.


That is what I am worried about. The ban becomes effective 2 months today - September 11th.


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## buttah (Jun 9, 2008)

silentjon said:


> That is what I am worried about. The ban becomes effective 2 months today - September 11th.


Appropriate, take away more of your freedoms on the anniversary of one of the darkest days in our country's history.


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## Cigary4343 (Jul 12, 2008)

Very sad to say that it won't end here and each state is adopting more and more legislation to put some kind of ban on cigar smoking. The only safe place anymore is at home and I'm not sure about that anymore.


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## eodcole (Feb 21, 2008)

baba said:


> At this rate, I have to leave the U.S. to find freedom.


Don't be so sure of that. I'm finishing up my stint with the USAF in Turkey and this country just recently passed a smoking ban in all public places, and public transportation. For a country that still burns a bunch of trash and doesn't seem to be as with the times as the rest of the world they're even jumping on the smoking ban band wagon.

I figure you'll just have to be a rebel in order to smoke. Before too long with all these smoking bands they will just ban tobacco sales. I think we all will essentially become criminals like the heroin and meth peddlers.

So when are we as citizens going to his the reset button on our govt?

I'm a PA resident by the way. Although this is an "acceptable" ban like others have said it will certainly get worse.


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## Mr. Mojo Risin (Jan 23, 2008)

Bad, but better than Maryland, (as most places are).


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## mikejh-cl (Jun 19, 2007)

it was only a matter of time i guess, pretty soon no one will be able to smoke anywhere


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## houdini-cl (May 23, 2008)

silentjon said:


> Recently PA joined most other states with a statewide smoking ban. While naturally I am not happy about this, it is not as severe as most other states.
> 
> Where Smoking Is Allowed
> 
> ...


Thats how it starts...NY was the same way.


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## azpostal (Jul 12, 2008)

This is getting really bad, pretty soon they'll try to get us in our homes


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## Kidknee (Jul 23, 2008)

*bans*

Lets ban the crop that founded I mean funded our nation. That makes sense.


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## mhlatke (Oct 13, 2007)

PA is just another domino falling........which state will be next?


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## silentjon (Apr 19, 2007)

Well tomorrow, the PA smoking ban goes into effect. This past Friday, I attended a great cigar dinner that featured great cigars, great food, great scotch and great camaraderie. But this will be a thing of the past - no more cigar dinners at restaurants. What a damn shame.


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## MikeGates (Aug 22, 2008)

We've had it in De for a few years now, I've started smoking after the ban was in effect so feel luky that you got to at least enjoy it for a while. Slowly America is becoming "smoke free." I'm just afriad that they'll try to really make it smoke free by baning tobacco al together.


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## GreySmoke (Jan 11, 2008)

SVB said:


> Well, at least you can still smoke in a shop (unlike Illinois)


You can smoke in a cigar shop in Illinois. They grandfathered in all the cigarshops where neither food or alcahol is sold. To get a new license you must be a stand alone building if you want a smoking lounge.


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## BigBuddha76 (Mar 15, 2005)

thats a pretty weak ban I must say. it will kill smoking at TGIF's and Applebees, but leave it open for all the real bars in the state (at least you have real bars in PA here in VA theres no such thing).

I dont agree with the intrusion of the govt in the affairs of business. Let the business' decide.


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## silentjon (Apr 19, 2007)

Some of the local restaurants were holding smoke-free celebrations yesterday. You were able to bring in your cigarettes and cigars in for exchange for a $5.00 coupon.


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